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Kanye West on Tuesday described slavery as a choice, praised Donald Trump for doing "the impossible" by becoming US president, and attributed his 2016 mental breakdown to opioid addiction.

In the latest in a series of startling interviews, tweets and videos, the 40-year-old rapper also revealed he had undergone liposuction some years ago because he did not want to be called fat.

The Grammy Award-winning musician's most controversial comments came in a rambling video interview at the Southern California offices of celebrity website TMZ.com where he was asked about his recent Twitter spree.

West emerged from a year's silence on Twitter two weeks ago to post up to 20 tweets an hour on topics ranging from politics, philosophy and fashion to his own image. He also said he had fired his manager.

At one point in the TMZ interview, shown on its website, West says, "When you hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years? That sounds like a choice."

The comments sparked an immediate response from TMZ writer Van Lathan who was seen confronting West in a snippet posted online.

The musician was shouting across the office: "Do you feel that I'm feeling ... do you feel that I'm being free and I'm thinking free?"

Lathan stood up and told the Stronger rapper: "I think what you're doing right now is actually the absence of thought.

"Kanye, you're entitled to your opinion ... You're entitled to believe whatever you want, but there is fact and real world, real life consequence behind everything you just said. And while you are making music and being an artist and living the life that you've earned by being a genius, the rest of us in society have to deal with these threats to our lives.

After saying slavery was a choice, Kanye tells TMZ's Van Lathan to stop screaming because it "will make us look crazy." 😕 pic.twitter.com/Amad4PctZW

"We have to deal with the marginalisation that has come from the 400 years of slavery that you said for our people was a choice."

Lathan said he was "disappointed", adding: "I am unbelievably hurt by the fact that you have morphed into something, to me, that is not real."

The civil rights group NAACP said in a response addressed to West: "There is a lot of misinformation out there and we are happy to provide insight. Black people have fought against slavery since we first landed on this continent."

Symone D. Sanders, political commentator and CNN contributor, led the anti-West chorus on Twitter.

Kanye is a dangerous caricature of an “free thinking” black person in America. Frankly, I am disgusted and I’m over it. Also (I can’t believe I have to say this): Slavery was far from a choice.